22-02-2019
The figure skater is barely into her teens and is already the US champion. But some believe the mental and physical strain of elite sport should waitAlysa Liu covered her face and cried as the results were announced at the US ladies figure skating championship in Detroit, Michigan, last month. Her coach, Laura Lipetsky who has worked with her since she was five, hugged her.Liu had just won the national title at the age of 13, making her the youngest athlete to have done so, and with two triple axels no less. The weeks since have been a media frenzy. She appeared on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, and profiles on her meteoric rise have been published across the world. But for all the attention Liu has received, she won’t be able to compete in Worlds. She’s too young. A 1997 International Skating Union rule requires athletes to be at least 15 by 1 July preceding the season to participate in senior-level international events. Continue reading...

22-02-2019
• India Women 203, England Women 136; India win by 66 runs• Ekta Bisht takes 4-25 as England collapse from 111-3England Women suffered a batting collapse as Ekta Bisht claimed four wickets to help India seal a 66-run victory in the first one-day international of the series in Mumbai.Having been set a victory target of 203, the tourists saw seven wickets fall for just 25 runs – the last four managing to add only one as captain Heather Knight watched on, finishing 39 not out. Continue reading...

22-02-2019
Plus: Old Trafford’s mysterious semi-final snub, back-to-back penalty misses and unused subs. Mail us or tweet @TheKnowledge_GU“Tottenham have currently played 30 consecutive Premier League games without drawing one,” notes Wouter van Dael. “What is the longest ever such league run?”The short answer is that Spurs are Premier League record-breakers, Wouter, but only just. “Bolton previously held this title with a run of 28 games between March and December 2011,” writes James Clarke. “But in the wider context of English league history, Spurs have a long way to go yet. Twenty-nine clubs have had longer streaks without a draw at some point – and seven have gone more than 40 consecutive league games without a stalemate: Birmingham (43 games), Walsall (44), Leicester (44), Bradford Park Avenue (44), Stoke (46), Sunderland (46) and Aston Villa (51). Although it is probably worth noting that Sunderland’s is the most recent of these, coming comparatively recently in 1908-09. The slightly interesting quirk here is that five of these seven draw-less clubs are midlands teams.Season 2017-1830 Apr Spurs 2-0 Watford5 May West Brom 1-0 Spurs9 May Spurs 1-0 Newcastle13 May Spurs 5-4 Leicester Continue reading...

22-02-2019
Justified hype at Old Trafford, Manuel Lanzini returns, Leicester’s Youri Tielemans seeks the consistency that eluded him at Monaco and Spurs must be careful at BurnleySometimes you just have to stoke the hype. The ramifications of Sunday’s fixture at Old Trafford could ripple out for years. A victory for Manchester United would deal a serious blow to Liverpool’s hopes of landing that long-awaited title. And if Jürgen Klopp’s team fall short this season, then winning the league will be exponentially more difficult for them in future, especially with title jitters close to institutionalised among their fanbase. That, in turn, would make a United victory particularly satisfying for their supporters and increase the chances of Ole Gunnar Solskjær being appointed as the club’s permanent manager (and a bonus offshoot of that could be, if reports are to be believed, that Chelsea get to thinking it would be a good idea to promote Gianfranco Zola). Continue reading...

22-02-2019
Max Rushden, Barry Glendenning, Jonathan Wilson and Nick Miller discuss everything looking like handball in slow-motion, goalless draws, Cristiano Ronaldo reacting like Ronaldo reacts to a defeat, the penalty which made it to Row 32 and P!nkJoin the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and email.We look back at the last couple of days of football, starting with Manchester City’s 3-2 win over Schalke, having come back from a goal and a man down to take an advantage into the second leg. Continue reading...

22-02-2019
• Wales coach worked with Sinckler on Lions tour in 2017• England’s travel plans also dismissed as ‘significant mistake’Warren Gatland has responded to Eddie Jones’s attempts to wind up Wales before the Six Nations game on Saturday by describing the England tighthead Kyle Sinckler as an “emotional timebomb”.Gatland also called England’s decision to delay their journey to Cardiff until Friday afternoon as a “significant mistake” and dismissed Jones’s claim that Gatland’s current side are the greatest in Welsh history. The England coach had earlier questioned whether Wales can handle the expectation that comes with seeking a record 12th consecutive win in what will be Gatland’s last Six Nations match against England. Continue reading...

22-02-2019
Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to Madrid was an unhappy one with his Juventus side losing 2-0 to Atlético in the Champions League. Ronaldo received plenty of abuse from the home fans and reacted in the mixed zone after the match displaying five fingers to the media, one for each Champions League title he has won. Giménez and Godín put Atlético Madrid in charge against Juventus Continue reading...